The Los Angeles-class attack submarines (SSN) were the most numerous class of nuclear powered submarines built by any nation, and formed the bulk of the U.S. attack submarine force well into the 21st century. They were preceded by the Sturgeon class and followed by the Seawolf class.

LA-class submarines are extremely fast and carry about 25 torpedo-tube launched weapons. Any boat of this class may launch a Tomahawk cruise missile from its horizontal torpedo tubes. However, the last 31 boats of the class have 12 vertical launch tubes specifically for this purpose.

The final 23 boats in the series, referred to as "688I," are even quieter, incorporate an advanced combat system, and are configured for under-ice operations (with diving planes on the bow and a reinforced sail).

General Characteristics

• Builders: Electric Boat and Newport News Shipbuilding
• Displacement: 6,927 tons submerged
• Length: 360 feet
• Beam: 33 feet
• Draft: 32 feet
• Propulsion: S6G reactor
• Speed: 25+ knots submerged
• Depth: Greater than 800 feet
• Complement: 140
• Armament:
  • Four 21-inch forward torpedo tubes
  • on SSNs 719-725 and 750-773, 12 Vertical Launch System tubes

Boats

Homeported at the Naval Submarine Base, Groton, Connecticut

• USS Philadelphia (SSN 690)
• USS Memphis (SSN 691)
• USS Dallas (SSN 700)
• USS Augusta (SSN 710)
• USS Providence (SSN 719)
• USS Pittsburgh (SSN 720)
• USS San Juan (SSN 751)
• USS Alexandria (SSN 757)
• USS Annapolis (SSN 760)
• USS Springfield (SSN 761)
• USS Hartford (SSN 768)
• USS Toledo (SSN 769)

Homeported at the Naval Submarine Base, Norfolk, Virginia

• USS Jacksonville (SSN 699)
• USS Minneapolis - Saint Paul (SSN 708)
• USS Hyman G. Rickover (SSN 709)
• USS Norfolk (SSN 714)
• USS Oklahoma City (SSN 723)
• USS Newport News (SSN 750)
• USS Albany (SSN 753)
• USS Scranton (SSN 756)
• USS Boise (SSN 764)
• USS Montpelier (SSN 765)

• USS Hampton (SSN 767)
• USS San Francisco (SSN 711)

Homeported at the Naval Submarine Base, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

• USS Los Angeles (SSN 688)
• USS La Jolla (SSN 701)
• USS Buffalo (SSN 715)
• USS Olympia (SSN 717)
• USS Honolulu (SSN 718)
• USS Chicago (SSN 721)
• USS Key West (SSN 722)
• USS Louisville (SSN 724)
• USS Pasadena (SSN 752)
• USS Topeka (SSN 754)
• USS Asheville (SSN 758)
• USS Columbus (SSN 762)
• USS Santa Fe (SSN 763)
• USS Charlotte (SSN 766)
• USS Tucson (SSN 770)
• USS Columbia (SSN 771)
• USS Greeneville (SSN 772)
• USS Cheyenne (SSN 773)

Homeported at the Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, New Hampshire

• USS City of Corpus Christi (SSN 705)
• USS Albuquerque (SSN 706)
• USS Miami (SSN 755)

Homeported at the Naval Submarine Base, San Diego, California

• USS Bremerton (SSN 698)
• USS Portsmouth (SSN 707)
• USS Houston (SSN 713)
• USS Salt Lake City (SSN 716)
• USS Helena (SSN 725)
• USS Jefferson City (SSN 759)

Stricken, to be disposed of by submarine recycling

• USS Omaha (SSN 692)
• USS Cincinnati (SSN 693)
• USS Groton (SSN 694)
• USS Boston (SSN 703)
• USS Baltimore (SSN 704)
• USS Atlanta (SSN 712)
• USS Birmingham (SSN 695)
• USS New York City (SSN 696)
• USS Indianapolis (SSN 697)
• USS Phoenix (SSN 702)

Further information

• GlobalSecurity.org -- SSN-688 Los Angeles-class (http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ship/ssn-688.htm)
• Role of the Modern Submarine (http://www.submarinehistory.com/21stCentury.html)
• World War II Submarine Veterans Oral History Project (http://www.oralhistoryproject.com)